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George Reid Foster RHA/RFA died 25 5 1918


ralphjd

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This soldier died on this date at St Herberts Hospital Greenwich service number 56615 , despite an extensive search of the usual sites SDGW etc my  friend and I cannot find any other details for him - family etc  SDGW says born Stockport CWGC - Elgin .Rochdale Times states "of Rochdale" Any information from a Pal would be much appreciated. Ralph.

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His regimental number was issued at No. 2 Depot RFA, Preston, in mid December 1914. His date of entry to France (July 29, 1915) could relate to 123rd Brigade RFA, 124th Brigade RFA or 126th (How.) Brigade RFA, if he was not just in a draft for Base Depot at Havre. As you probably know, at the time of his death in May 1918 he had been serving in B/149.

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A 'scrap record' on Find My Past showing some information on hospitalised soldiers shows an entry for G Foster, Gunner 56615, 29 Brigade, 125 Battery RFA.

Report of 24 November 1916 shows that he was in hospital at Etaples. His condition is recorded as 'Removed from danger list' 'Improved'

(image courtesy of Find My Past)

Foster_GR_1916_hospitalised.jpg

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4 minutes ago, DavidOwen said:

I think that is Mary Meadth, unusual name FMP comes up with b 1885 living in Thorne, Yorkshire as per 1921 census or b 1878 d 1958 Sidcup, Kent.

I thought Meadth as well. The 1921 Census shows that she was born in Inverness, Scotland -- only about 40 miles from Elgin (possible birth place for GRF)

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1 minute ago, Allan1892 said:

I thought Meadth as well. The 1921 Census shows that she was born in Inverness, Scotland -- only about 40 miles from Elgin (possible birth place for GRF)

That would fit, I see he is buried in Greenwich so what connection might there be to Rochdale?

Ralph does enjoy setting us puzzles!

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Found a FMP newspaper articles from 1912 in which George Reid Foster won equal second place in Supplementary Classes at Munlochy School which would be about the right thing for a 14/15 year old. Munlochy is on Moray Firth so the Elgin connection fits. https://search.findmypast.co.uk/bna/viewarticle?id=bl%2f0001883%2f19120725%2f135&stringtohighlight=george reid foster

Edit I hate predictive text!!

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5 minutes ago, DavidOwen said:

Found a FMP newspaper articles from 1912 in which George Reid Foster won equal second place in Supplementary Classes at Munlochy School which would be about the right thing for a 14/15 year old. Munich is on Moray Firth so the Elgin connection fits. https://search.findmypast.co.uk/bna/viewarticle?id=bl%2f0001883%2f19120725%2f135&stringtohighlight=george reid foster

 

Well found -- I've done several searches for a George Reid Foster (with various spellings of Reid and Foster) but haven't found his birth or entry in 1901 Census for Scotland (1911 Scotland not available in FMP or Ancestry). Like wise searches in England.

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There are two 14 year old George Reid Foster's recorded in the 1911 Scotland census, both living in Knockbain, Ross and Cromarty, which fits with the 1912 newspaper articles that DavidOwen found. I suspect for some reason he has been recorded twice, rather than it being a case of two separate individuals. What is strange is that there are no other Fosters living in Knockbain, so the only conclusion must be that he was either visiting or living apart from his family.

FOSTER GEORGE REID 1911 M 14 073/ 4/ 9 Knockbain Ross and Cromarty
FOSTER GEORGE REID 1911 M 14 073/ 4/ 12 Knockbain Ross and Cromarty
Edited by Tawhiri
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There is also the birth of a George Reid registered in Elgin in 1897, so I'm wondering whether he was illegitimate and registered under his mother's maiden name, with Foster being a later addition. No sigh of a Reid/Foster marriage being registered in Scotland before 1918 though.

REID     GEORGE     M     1897     135/ 36     Elgin

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Returning to the 1911 Scotland census and looking for Reid's living in Knockbain produces these three individuals living at the same residence, which looks like parents and an adult daughter. They're not living at the same residence as either of the two George Reid Foster's recorded in Knockbain, but I'd be having a close look at the 1897 George Reid birth in Elgin to see what the mother's forename was to see if there was a possible connection.

REID JAMES 1911 M 74 073/ 4/ 3 Knockbain Ross and Cromarty
REID MARY 1911 F 75 073/ 4/ 3 Knockbain Ross and Cromarty
REID CATHERINE 1911 F 38 073/ 4/ 3 Knockbain Ross and Cromarty
Edited by Tawhiri
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15 hours ago, Tawhiri said:

but I'd be having a close look at the 1897 George Reid birth in Elgin to see what the mother's forename was to see if there was a possible connection.

George Reid was born on the 14 January 1897, his mother was Mary Ann Reid, a dressmaker, residing at Bishopmill, Elgin. George was illegitimate. (image courtesy of Scotlandspeople)

Reid_George birth entry.jpg

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The transcription of the 1901 Census as held on Ancestry shows that Margaret and George were living in the household of a James and Helen Clark. Margaret is described as being  unmarried and a sister to the head of the household. Was she the sister of Helen Clark?? (image courtesy of Ancestry)

 

The transcription of the 1901 Census (see image below) looks as though the names listed were all in the same household. They are not -- James Clark and his family lived at 33 Blantyne Place whereas Margaret Reid and George lived at 31 Blantyne Place. Does anyone have access to see the actual Census image instead of just the transcription -- I would have expected Margaret to declare herself as the head of the household if there was only her and George living at number 31. By declaring herself as sister would (to me at least) imply that there was someone else living there as head of the household.

Reid_George 1901 transcription.jpg

Edited by Allan1892
To correct heads of household
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The birth entry (see full page image below, courtesy of Scotlandspeople) shows that George was born at 31 Blantyne Place, Bishopmill, Elgin; he was illegitimate and his mother was Mary Ann Reid a dressmaker. The informant of the birth was Margaret Reid described as being 'mother' - i.e. the mother of Mary Ann. A search of various records (including public trees on Ancestry) has come up with the following:

William Reid married Margaret Chalmers on the 30 June 1871 at Urquhart, Morayshire.

They had the following children:

Mary Ann, born 91 High Street, Elgin on the 19 August 1874

Margaret, born 91 High Street, Elgin on the 19 July 1879

John Chalmers Reid, born 91 High Street, Elgin on the 25 June 1882.

William Reid (the father) died on the 3 April 1899 , his residence at death was 31 Blantyre Place, Bishopmill, Elgin -- the same address where George Reid was born in 1897. This would confirm that the mother of George was indeed Mary Ann Reid. The question is, why was young George with his mother's sister, Margaret, in the 1901 Census. Can anyone with access to the 1911 Scottish Census find young George? Who was he living with in 1911?

Reid birth 1897.pdf

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5 hours ago, Allan1892 said:

Can anyone with access to the 1911 Scottish Census find young George? Who was he living with in 1911?

See my earlier post, there are two 14 year old George Reid Foster's recorded at two separate addresses in Knockbain, Ross and Cromarty in the 1911 census, so the Foster connection has been established by this stage. No sign of any Foster's or Reid's living at the same addresses though, and the earliest Reid/Foster marriage, where the bride was a Reid, that I could find on ScotlandsPeople was in 1918.

Edited by Tawhiri
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9 hours ago, Allan1892 said:

Who was he living with in 1911?

A trawl through the 1911 census records focusing on Knockbain and looking for anyone also recorded as living at the same reference numbers as the George Reid Foster noted above produces a long list of unrelated male and female individuals, most of who seem to be under the age or 20, or older than 40. Many of them appear to be recorded twice with the same two reference numbers as George Reid Foster, those who are only recorded once have a second entry recorded under a reference number that falls within the same sequence however, i.e. 073/ 4/ 10, or 073/ 4/ 11. To me this points towards an institution of some sort, a poor or work house perhaps?

Edited by Tawhiri
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I think that this is the Reid family in the 1881 Scotland census, although they seem to be spread over two adjacent addresses, this doesn't bother me because I have previously seen this with other families.

REID WILLIAM 1881 M 51 135/ 3/ 8 Elgin
REID MARGARET 1881 F 39 135/ 3/ 8 Elgin
REID WILLIAM 1881 M 8 135/ 3/ 8 Elgin
REID MARY ANN 1881 F 16 135/ 3/ 9 Elgin
REID MARY ANN 1881 F 6 135/ 3/ 9 Elgin
REID MARGT 1881 F 1 135/ 3/ 9 Elgin

I'm thinking that the two Mary Ann's are a transcription error, given their ages, as there are only three Mary Ann Reid's born in all of Morayshire between 1870 and 1880, and none in the preceding decade. Note that there is also an older brother named William, and recall that according to the Register of Dead Soldiers' Effects the payments on the death of George Reid Foster were made to his uncle William Reid.

In the 1891 census, Mary Ann Reid is not living with the family, but younger brother John is there, and they also have another John Reid who is 10 years older than father William living with them, so possibly an older brother of William senior or some other family member with a connection to them.

REID JOHN 1891 M 71 135/ 13/ 14 Elgin Moray
REID WILLIAM 1891 M 61 135/ 13/ 14 Elgin Moray
REID MARGARET 1891 F 49 135/ 13/ 14 Elgin Moray
REID WILLIAM 1891 M 18 135/ 13/ 14 Elgin Moray
REID MARGARET 1891 F 11 135/ 13/ 14 Elgin Moray
REID JOHN C 1891 M 8 135/ 13/ 14 Elgin Moray

There isn't an obvious match for Mary Ann anywhere in Morayshire, I've discounted the 15 year old Mary A Reid living in Garmouth, on the grounds that her age should have been accurately recorded as 16. What does catch my eye though is a 16 year old Mary A Reid living in Knockbain, given George's connection with the same area 20 years later. There is no sign of her in the 1881 census in Knockbain, and there is also no birth registered in Ross and Cromarty between 1860 and 1880 that would match either.

In the 1901 census, as noted above, younger sister Margaret is living with George, and members of the Clark family.

REID MARGARET 1901 F 21 135/ 13/ 20 Elgin Moray
REID GEORGE 1901 M 4 135/ 13/ 20 Elgin Moray

The rest of the family is, however, proving to be elusive.

Edited to add that brother John Chalmers Reid's death was registered in Elgin in 1899, which explains the absence of one family member. Based on the registration numbers it looks as though his death predated that of father William also in the same year. There is also the death of a Margaret Reid aged 58 registered in 1900, which would be the right age for mother Margaret. This death is registered under both Reid and Chalmers which confirms that it is indeed Margaret, so by 1901 only William and Margaret Reid of the known children were still alive, with Mary Ann still being somewhat elusive.

REID JOHN CHALMERS 16 CHALMERS 1899 135/ 29 Elgin
REID WILLIAM 69 MACBETH 1899 135/ 55 Elgin
CHALMERS MARGARET 58 MCDONALD 1900 135/ 70 Elgin
REID MARGARET 58 MCDONALD 1900 135/ 70 Elgin
Edited by Tawhiri
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On 23/09/2022 at 13:36, Allan1892 said:

an entry for G Foster, Gunner 56615, 29 Brigade, 125 Battery RFA.

This actually makes a lot of sense, as a section of A/123 swapped places with 125 Battery in November 1915. The move was meant to be temporary but became permanent. As he was sent to Preston Depot his enlistment would have been in N.W. England, Wales, or possibly the London area but not in Scotland. There are some entries in the newspaper archive on FMP for the Reid family if you search for "31 Blantyre Place". I'm not subscribed but the text should give dates for the deaths of Margaret Chalmers and John Chalmers Reid along with that of William Reid senior.

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25 minutes ago, David Porter said:

This actually makes a lot of sense, as a section of A/123 swapped places with 125 Battery in November 1915. The move was meant to be temporary but became permanent. As he was sent to Preston Depot his enlistment would have been in N.W. England, Wales, or possibly the London area but not in Scotland. There are some entries in the newspaper archive on FMP for the Reid family if you search for "31 Blantyre Place". I'm not subscribed but the text should give dates for the deaths of Margaret Chalmers and John Chalmers Reid along with that of William Reid senior.

Could not ask for more, you lot are AMAZING drinks all round again. Ralph

Thanks David, info passed on to my grateful mate. Ralph

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20 minutes ago, David Porter said:

There are some entries in the newspaper archive on FMP for the Reid family if you search for "31 Blantyre Place". I'm not subscribed but the text should give dates for the deaths of Margaret Chalmers and John Chalmers Reid along with that of William Reid senior.

A search on '31 Blantyre Place' brought up a number of 'hits' - the only ones relevant to the Reid family were:-

  • Elgin Courant and Morayshire Advertiser published 21 February 1899 -- reported the death of John Chalmers Reid (the brother of George Reid's mother) who died on the 19 February and was buried in the Elgin Cemetery on the 22 February.
  • Elgin Courant and Morayshire Advertiser published 27 March 1900 -- reported the death of Margaret Reid (nee Chalmers), the grandmother of George Reid, who died on the 25 March and was buried in the Elgin Cemetery on the 28 March.

One of the other 'hits' was in the Banffshire Advertiser (29 March 1906) which listed a number of nominations for a local school, amongst the names was a John Flett -- this indicates that the Reid family no longer lived at 31 Blantyre Place.

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